971 – War elephant corps of the Southern Han defeated at Shao by crossbow fire from Song Dynasty troops; Southern Han state forced to submit to the Song Dynasty. 1st regular war elephant corps in Chinese army
1368 – In a coronation ceremony, Zhu Yuanzhang ascends to the throne of China as the Hongwu Emperor, initiating Ming Dynasty rule over China that would last for three centuries.
1556 – Shaanxi Earthquake – deadliest ever recorded kills 830,000 in Shensi Province, China
1950 – Israeli Knesset resolves Jerusalem is capital of Israel.
1973 – US President Richard Nixon announces an accord has been reached to end Vietnam War.
1978 – Sweden becomes the first nation in the world to ban aerosol sprays, believed to be damaging to earth’s ozone layer.
2002 – American journalist Daniel Pearl was kidnapped in Karachi, Pakistan, and later executed.
2009 – UK officially enters recession as GDP falls by 1.5% in the last quarter of 2008 following a 0.6% drop in the third quarter, with unemployment growing by 131,000 to 1.92 million (6.1%)
2012 – European Union agrees to embargo Iranian oil in protest against Iran’s alleged nuclear weapons program
2013 – 18 people are killed in a market shooting in Damboa, Nigeria
2015 – Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud is crowned King of Saudi Arabia, on the death of this half-brother King Abdullah
2016 – 8 museum workers from Egyptian Museum, Cairo referred for prosecution for reattaching Tutankhamun’s beard with inappropriate glue
2016 – Zika virus outbreak in Brazil prompts Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador and Jamaica to recommend women delay pregnancies for up to 2 years
Music:
1986 – 1st induction of Rock ‘N’ Roll Hall of Fame (Chuck Berry, James Brown, Ray Charles, Domino, Everly Bros, Buddy Holly, J L Lewis & Elvis Presley)
Sport:
2018 – LeBron James becomes the 7th and youngest (33 years 24 days) to reach the 30,000 NBA point milestone during 114-102 loss to San Antonio Spurs.
Via Britannica / On This Day
